Stronger Together
by AquaTurquoise
Summary: Sofia comes to terms with her reality: no matter what, Cedric really does have her best interests at heart, and they are certainly much stronger when they work together. (Part of the Beyond Enchancia Series. Takes place over two years after the show's ending.)


Stronger Together

Summary: Sofia comes to terms with her reality: no matter what, Cedric really does have her best interests at heart, and they are certainly much stronger when they work together. (Part of the Beyond Enchancia Series. Takes place over two years after the show's ending.)

Disclaimer: I don't own _Sofia the First_.

A/N: This part is a tiny bit more lighthearted, and there's even a bit of a surprise toward the end. :D

*Twenty-Second Story/Episode 22*

"May I speak with you for a moment?" Cedric asked quietly as he gently rested a hand on Sofia's shoulder. He felt her tense up under his fingers, but he kept his hand still. "Please?"

Sofia slowly turned toward her friend and nodded silently, following him away from the others, who were discussing their options as far as the impending 'battle' went. Of course, they hoped it _wouldn't_ come to that, but they were also very realistic. In fact, despite Sofia's initial response that they didn't have time to plot a course, she eventually relented and decided that Vega most certainly had a point. After all, the last thing they'd want to do would be to rush into something and end up getting hurt—or getting others hurt in the process.

Cedric sat down on another boulder as Sofia sat a small distance from him, her back turned to him. He frowned. "I know you're angry with me. You…have every right to be."

She turned, frowning toward him questioningly.

"I should have known better than to doubt you—to assume that you needed any manner of hand-holding through this trial, or to believe that _you_ of all people needed to be protected." He sighed. "The irony doesn't escape me… Despite my hesitancy earlier, I know quite well that everything is going to be all right in the end." Cedric frowned as he noticed the forlorn look on the princess's face. "What is it?"

Sofia shook her head. "Nothing."

"Sofia, please don't do th—"

Her eyes narrowed, and she glared at him. "I don't want to be an orphan, okay?!" She sighed heavily as her mentor gaped at her in surprise. "If they destroy my family, I'll be left all alone, Mr. Cedric… I won't _have_ a family anymore…"

"Sofia…" He began to reach toward her but thought better of it, instead clasping his hands together. "I…" Well, really, what _could_ he say to _that_ declaration?

"I know it sounds stupid," Sofia whispered, her head hung low. "But… It's something I just can't get out of my mind." She gripped her amulet. "It happened to Elena. It could happen to _me_."

Cedric gasped softly as she began sniffling, and he reached out to her and gathered her into a clearly much-needed hug, allowing her to just cry and let out her anguish. He hadn't realized just how much this situation had negatively impacted his friend. Obviously, she'd been nervous and upset about the scenario the last several months, but he could tell now that it had all come crashing down on her at once. _This_ was why she was so worked up. She was scared of being left alone… Of having no one when the battle was over… Poor Sofia.

The sorcerer sighed quietly and brushed his fingers through her hair as she tried to slow her tears, to little avail. "Let me tell you something, and I just need you to listen. You can keep crying, because at least that's allowing you to release all that stress you've had all this time…" Hearing no response, he continued, "While I can't promise you that _nothing_ bad will happen, I _will_ promise you that we all intend to help you defeat these villains. We're going to give it our all so that we can get things under control and back to normal as soon as possible."

Sofia sniffled and looked up at him, her eyes shimmering with tears, and a few tracking down her cheeks. "Why do you still want to help me? I was really…awful to you back there."

Cedric reached up to her face and gently wiped away her tears. "Because you don't give up on people you love just because they had a moment of anger." He smiled gently as she hiccupped, a few more tears falling for a different reason this time. Again, he brushed those away. "At least, that's what I learned from _you_ this past summer…"

Sofia smiled appreciatively. "I got really lucky finding a friend in you, Mr. Cedric."

"Are you serious?" He chuckled and shrugged. "I'm the lucky one. A heart as good as yours is difficult to come by." He smiled as she blushed modestly at his words. "Am I forgiven?"

"Only if I am," she responded simply, hugging him yet again and resting her head against his shoulder.

"Of course," he whispered, holding her securely.

"Why is it every time I see you two, you're hugging _again_?"

The two friends gasped and broke apart, their eyes widening at the sight of a very familiar and irritated-looking raven.

"Wormwood!" Cedric's mouth dropped as the raven flew down from a nearby tree and landed on the ground. "Wh—How did you get out of the kingdom?"

"Simple. I left a few days ago." He vaguely shrugged. "I needed to find _something_ to do so that I wouldn't grow bored, so I went to visit Ni—" He paused and cleared his throat. "You know what? None of this is any of your business anyway." He avoided the knowing smirk of his former master as he used his wings to gesture toward the kingdom. "Meanwhile, I had _nothing_ to do with this—just so we're clear."

"We know, Wormwood," Sofia assured him as she stood, wiping away the rest of her tears. "It was an exiled princess and one of Dad's former warriors."

"You're always making enemies, aren't you, Princess Sofia?" Wormwood rolled his eyes as he flapped his wings, alighting onto her shoulder. "How can I help?"

"Excuse me?" Cedric asked, clearly befuddled. "One moment you're chastising her, and the next you want to help her? I thought you two didn't even like each other."

Wormwood gave the sorcerer a sarcastic stare. "Cedric. I'm _trying_ to be a 'good raven' here. Isn't that what you wanted? I'm supposed to be a goody-two-talons-fluff-ball or something like that."

"I'm not sure _where_ you got _that_ description, but I'm not entirely sure I believe your sincerity."

The raven scoffed. "Believe what you wish, but I'll say this: as uninvolved as I prefer to be with the lives of you…humans… I actually do c—er, have some sordid form of _sympathy_ for those who suffer for no reason at all."

Sofia gave him a sardonic look. "Since when?"

Wormwood offered the girl a deadpanned stare. "Since some know-it-all little raven scolded me for being an 'unfeeling delinquent who's giving ravens a bad name.'"

Cedric smirked. "Nina?"

"No, Diablo. Of _course_ Nina." He rolled his eyes. "Look, either take my offer of help or leave it. I honestly don't care."

Sofia smiled, stroking his feathers. "I think you do. We'll take it."

"Sofia…"

"Mr. Cedric, I think it's time we _all_ started working together again." She looked toward her mentor with a calm smile. "I'm not sure if this will change things with you and Wormwood, but we've got to _try_. As far as I'm concerned, it's going to take _everyone_ to overcome this evil."

"Yes, Cedric," Wormwood drawled with a small smirk. "Put your ego aside and let me _help_." He frowned and sighed. "In all seriousness… I honestly just have a really bad feeling, and I… Ugh, I didn't want to see anyone actually get hurt… Not this time. Believe it or not…"

The princess turned her smile to the raven. "We'll take all the help we can get, Wormwood. Thank you."

"Don't thank me yet." Wormwood glared ahead at the barrier-bound kingdom. "We're not out of this yet. I hope you have a plan, Princess."

She nodded and swallowed nervously, sighing in content as Cedric walked over and wrapped a comforting arm around her. "So do I…"

The end (and to be continued…)

(Next Story/Episode 23: Showdown)


End file.
